A tribute to cinema legends in Ome

TOKYO – To step onto the platform at JR Ome station is to begin a journey back through the history of cinema. A stoic John Wayne, cowboy hat set atop his head, stares at arriving and departing passengers from a billboard for the film “Stagecoach.” Waiting inside the tunnel leading to the ticket gate is Audrey Hepburn, black sunglasses dangling from her lips in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Read more

The silicone valley of the dolls

TOKYO (TR) – You’ve come a long way, baby.

You were once armless, legless, and pressurized. Now you have full lips, a sensuous body of silicone, interchangeable heads, and even jewelry.

“The improvement in the design of our products over the past 30 years,” says showroom manager Yoshio Nakamura of Orient Industries, one of Japan’s leading love-doll manufacturers, “has been done by listening to our customers.” Read more

Rio claims top prize at 2008 Adult Broadcasting Awards

TOKYO – Adult video actress Rio of satellite channel Cherry Bomb was crowned Best Actress at the Sky PerfecTV! adult awards in Shibuya on Tuesday.

Held in a theater within the love hotel area of Tokyo’s Shibuya district, the annual event – titled “Eroide Onna Matsuri” (Erotic Ladies Festival) – was a mix of ceremonies and competitions for the hottest female talent from the roster of adult channels on satellite broadcasters Sky PerfecTV! and jSAT.

Yuma Asami, who took the Most Appearances title, wooed the crowd numerous times by bending over to reveal the tops of her 96 cm breasts. Read more

The eccentric Dr. Nakamats

TOKYO (TR) – The declining birthrate is a well-known issue in Japan, but for renowned inventor Dr. Yoshiro Nakamatsu, it is merely another challenge. Two weeks ago at a press conference in Tokyo, Nakamats, who prefers to drop the “u” from his name, unveiled a new bottle of Love Jet, a product first introduced nearly two decades ago that is said to boost a woman’s level of the hormone dehydroepiandrosterone when applied to her private parts.

Seated behind his cluttered desk in Dr. Nakamats House, located in the upscale Shimauma neighborhood of Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward, the inventor is very proud of the new version. “It has a dispenser that is smaller, making it perfect for her handbag. After a woman sprays Love Jet, men will flock around her,” explains Nakamats earnestly, sharply dressed in a sparkling silver tie, velvet coat and gray trousers. Read more

Shaking the industry

TOKYO – With a few strokes of his drafting pencil, architect Hidetsugu Aneha has sent the Japanese government’s bean counters into overdrive.

In 2005, Aneha was found to have falsified the earthquake-resistance data in the designs of multiple hotels and condominiums in an effort to reduce construction costs. The resulting scandal caused the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Tourism in June to modify the approval process for the procurement of a building permit, a move which has stalled the world’s second-biggest economy.

The stricter regulations within the Building Standards Law now require a clear designation of the responsible architect and a peer review of the submitted documents, both of which have extended the approval period from the typical 21 days to 70. What’s more, sellers of condominiums now must have enough funds in reserve to accommodate 10 years’ worth of potentially defective products. Read more

The wacky, wired world of Thanko

TOKYO – To the chagrin of the legions of geeks who call it home, Akihabara, the Tokyo district regarded as the prime shopping spot for the latest in electronics and cartoon merchandise, is being reshaped by a renaissance that has nothing to do with quirky gadgets or erotic manga.

Mainstream emporiums and sparkling office developments are now shadowing the area’s trusty standbys: the eateries where waitresses dress as maids in frilly Victorian wear, the dusty stalls selling mounds of outdated computer and audio gear, and the obscure shops peddling character costumes and accessories.

But for Hiroyasu Yamamitsu, a self-described otaku and president of quirky electronics company Thanko, this is an exciting time – not a reason for pessimism. “Now, there are so many new things,” says the president from outside one of his company’s two stores in Akihabara. “The great aspect of Akihabara is that it accepts all businesses. Everyone is welcome.” Read more

Kyosho Jutaku: Living large in small spaces

TOKYO (TR) – Fans of urban sprawl, try this: On one of Tokyo’s crisper mornings, ride the elevator up to the lounge on the 41st floor of the Park Hyatt building in Shinjuku and gaze in the direction of Mt. Fuji. The view will be of a nearly uninterrupted blanket of concrete and infrastructural morass that is likely unmatched anywhere in the world for its enormity and unsightliness. Blending to fill much of this scene are massive apartment buildings and smaller, block-like “mansions,” their bland concrete facades and uninspired designs resembling hospitals or penitentiaries.

Architects like Tokyo-based Jun Ishikawa, however, are in the process of adding small bits of color to this picture – both literally and figuratively. Small slivers of land that in days past may have been used for an industrial or commercial purpose are now the location of unique housing structures. Ishikawa specializes in mokuzo (wood) structures. Wood affords him the opportunity to implement his signature style: narrow buildings with arched roofs that resemble a one-room schoolhouse or church. Read more

Manny hits, Okajima dazzles Tokyo Dome

TOKYO (TR) – It was the other Japanese guy.

Aided by timely hitting from Manny Ramirez, Hideki Okajima pitched an inning of relief to win the first game of a two-game series for the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox over the Oakland Athletics in Tokyo.

Ramirez’s second two-run double in the top of the tenth broke a 4-4 tie and closer Jonathan Papelbon hung on to send the Red Sox and their new Japanese fans home happy with a 6-5 win in spite of a shaky performance from this week’s talk-of-the-town, Daisuke Matsuzaka. Read more